UPDATE 4/9/25: The school board for the biggest school district in El Paso County has ditched a resolution acknowledging there are two sexes and has replaced it with a policy that is scheduled to be discussed Thursday night on the same topic.
The title of the policy is "Preserving Fairness and Safety in Sports" and is being presented as a gender equity policy. In short, it would recognize male and female genders based on biology for sports.
Under the policy, the School District’s interscholastic athletic teams or sports shall be designated as one of the following based on biological sex: Male, men, or boys; Female, women, or girls; or Coed, mixed, or open.
It isn't clear how it would be enforced or what the penalties would be if the policy was violated. It also isn't clear if it applies to visiting teams.
It would impact teams, locker rooms, and hotel stays as follows:
Teams
Athletic teams or sports designated as female, women, or girls shall not be open to participation by biologically male students Athletic teams or sports designated as male, men, or boys shall not be open to participation by biologically female students.
Locker rooms
No biological male student shall enter or be present in a locker room being used by an athletic team or sport designated as female, women, or girls No biological female student shall enter or be present in a locker room being used by an athletic team or sport designated as male, men, or boys
Hotels
No biological male student shall be lodged in a hotel room or similar accommodation being used by an athletic team or sport designated as female, women, or girls No biological female student shall be lodged in a hotel room or similar accommodation being used by an athletic team or sport designated as male, men, or boys
A resolution was presented in a work session recently, but the legality was it was called into question. The board went into an executive session and is now presenting the policy as a discussion item Thursday night at 6:30, 3850 Pony Tracks Drive.
The new proposed policy can be read by clicking here.
"The proposed policy addresses critical issues surrounding athletic competition, placing focus on fairness, safety, and ensuring that women have opportunities in sports," part of a statement from D49 School Board President Lori Thompson reads. "JBA is the result of productive discussions with our legal counsel following the first reading of a draft resolution acknowledging the significance of recognizing biological sex in sports and private places. We anticipate and welcome a robust discussion on proposed policy JBA from members of our community, our student board of representatives and board directors. We will listen closely to all feedback prior to casting votes at an upcoming meeting, which follows our well established process as the committee tasked with overseeing the business of School District 49."
D49 parent and vice president of the organization Neighbors For Education, Lindsey Lee, has a child who identifies as non-binary. She doesn't understand the need for this type of policy.
"What I don't understand is no one has really explained what the need for this policy is," Lee said. "What immediately jumped out to me is... they spent a fair amount of time in this policy, sort of painstakingly defining biological sex as they view it, which frankly, is scientifically inaccurate."
Thompson wanted to make it clear, she doesn't speak for the entire board. She believes the policy is necessary, especially since President Donald Trump signed an executive order on the same matter.
"In District 49, we have what we call our Big Rocks Values," Thompson explained. "One of our Big Rock Values is to value all people. And so this isn't anti any specific group. This really is geared towards offering female athletes a fair playing field."
Thompson pointed to a United Nations survey on violence against women in sports. She believes there are issues with trans women competing in women's sports causing serious injuries. The study points out a finding that "where men and women have roughly the same levels of fitness, males' average punching power has been measured as 162 percent greater than females." That stat cited a study titled “Transgender women in the female category of sport: perspectives on testosterone suppression and performance advantage" in Sports Medicine Volume 51.
Lee feels the policy is just politics.
"What this ends up boiling down to for me, and is the source of my greatest concern, again, aside from the substance of it, is the fact that you know... the issues related to trans identity, and gender identity have become highly politicized," Lee stated. "The discussions around it have gotten really nasty, frankly. And that's harmful to our kids, and so without an enforcement mechanism in the policy, I don't understand the point."
Thompson admitted that the policy needs to be sorted out when it comes to enforcement, and how it could impact visiting teams. Thompson also believes the issue will be decided by the Supreme Court.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE ON THE RESOLUTION THAT IS NO LONGER BEING PRESENTED (MARCH 27):
A resolution is expected to be voted on in the near future by the D-49 Board of Education titled "Protecting Safety and Privacy for Boys and Girls in All School Settings."
You can read the full resolution at the bottom of this article. Wednesday night, the board voted to change out one word from "believes" to "acknowledges" that there are two sexes according to the federal government. According to the document, the Board acknowledges "there is a clear distinction between 'sex' which is the biological design at birth differentiating between male and female, and 'gender expression' and 'gender identity' which have been designated for example, Colorado H.B. 21-1108."
The draft resolution also points to several executive orders signed by President Donald Trump concerning the topic and concerns of potentially losing federal funding.
D-49 Superintendent Peter Hilts believes the district already follows state law when it comes to two points of the resolution, he believes the real focus should be on the third item in the resolution, which would have the district take any legal steps necessary to make sure males are not competing as females in sporting events. Hilts also wants to make certain the resolution doesn't violate any state laws.
"It is the board's prerogative to pick the fight," Hilts said in a work session Wednesday night. "If this is a fight you want to pick, I am your superintendent. I will fight this. I think this is a fight worth picking. I would prefer to see CHSAA take a position on this. I understand that they have not, but this is a case where Colorado does not have case law. [Colorado] does not explicitly have a statute, and only what we can infer from the Colorado constitution. So we would be helping to develop precedent were we to focus on item three."
You can read more about CHSAA's stance on the matter as uncovered by News5 Senior Reporter Brett Forrest by clicking here.
Board member Mike Heil, who also serves as the Treasurer, made it clear he is against the resolution.
"This resolution acknowledges legal restrictions to what can be done," Heil stated. "We should already be aware that the goals expressed here are in conflict with multiple state statutes with no clear path forward. This feels performative and unnecessary."
Board member Deb Schmidt shared her belief on why federal funding could be at risk if the resolution isn't passed.
"The deal is that if the district fails to recognize and honor biological sex, we are put at risk of losing federal funding," Schmidt said. "I really don't think President Trump is kidding around when he says that. I believe that we can put our heads together and figure out a way to honor both without sharing private spaces."
As currently written, the draft resolution would do the following for D-49:
1. Make certain, when legally appropriate, to update administrative policy acknowledging that there are only two sexes: male and female. This would include restrooms, locker rooms and sporting events.
2. Unless there are any laws or regulations from the state, restrooms and locker rooms would be separate for males and females.
3. "Legal" steps would be taken to make sure males are not competing as females in sporting events.
Woodland Park School District RE-2 passed a similar resolution.
D-49 is the largest school district in El Paso County, according to the latest data and has more than 10 times the students in the Woodland Park School District.
"This is the bottom line question," Hilts said Wednesday night. "Is the board expecting us to develop administrative practices that violate known law, or is the board asking us to implement this resolution compliant with law? That's the key question that I have for you as a superintendent."
The resolution could see some changes in an upcoming executive session scheduled for next Thursday April 3. Board member Marie La Vere-Wright wanted to make certain the executive session was held in a reasonable time frame before the school board meeting so the public had a chance to review it.
"If we come out of executive session and then choose to take action on anything that's been edited, the community hasn't seen it until right before we vote on it," La Vere-Wright pointed out. "We did that once. I don't think that that was the right thing to do then, I don't think it's the right thing to do now."
Hundreds of comments were shared by News5 viewers on social media on the topic.
"Ironically, this resolution claims to protect student privacy and security while actually endorsing policies guaranteed to embarrass, isolate, and endanger transgender and nonbinary students," one News5 viewer wrote on social media.
Others standing behind the resolution.
"OBVIOUSLY," one News5 viewer wrote with exclamation points. "A man CANNOT be a woman. A woman CANNOT be a man. Get men OUT of women’s spaces. [Get] men out of women’s sports. Use common sense."
The full draft resolution that was posted publicly can be read below:
Protecting Safety and Privacy for Boys and Girls in All School Settings
WHEREAS, District 49 (the “District”), in El Paso County, Colorado, prioritizes student safety and equality as embodied in the purposes and language of Title IX; and
WHEREAS, the Board of Education (the “Board”) [acknowledges] that there is a clear distinction between “sex” which is the biological design at birth differentiating between male and female, and “gender expression” and “gender identity” which have according to the latest data been designated by, for example, Colorado H.B. 21-1108; and
WHEREAS, the President of the United States, on January 20, 2025, signed executive order “DEFENDING WOMEN FROM GENDER IDEOLOGY EXTREMISM AND RESTORING BIOLOGICAL TRUTH TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,” declaring that “It is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female.”; and
WHEREAS, the aforementioned Executive Order further states “Federal funds shall not be used to promote gender ideology”, which puts at risk federal funding to the District should its policy or practice fail to recognize and honor biological sex; and WHEREAS, the President of the United States, on January 29, 2025, signed executive order “ENDING RADICAL INDOCTRINATION IN K-12 SCHOOLING,” declaring the Federal intent to eliminate federal funding for K-12 curriculum, instruction, programs, or activities in schools which even indirectly support the advancement of gender ideology or social transition of students; and WHEREAS, the Board respects students’ and staff’s right to personal physical privacy and personal security in restrooms and locker rooms, and their right to fair competition in sporting events;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OF DISTRICT 49:
The Board, in ensuring the full instructional environment respects the distinctions between the two sexes, authorizes and directs the Superintendent:
1. where legally appropriate, to update any relevant administrative policy, procedures and facility agreements and usage guidelines to be consistent with the knowledge that there are only two sexes, male and female, and consistent with the right to personal physical privacy and personal security in restrooms and locker rooms, and consistent with the right to fair competition in sporting events;
2. unless specifically compelled by the state, to ensure restrooms and locker rooms separate males and females; and
3. to take all available legal steps to ensure males are not competing as females in sporting events.
This RESOLUTION is duly adopted by the Board of Education of District 49 on ______________, 2025, taking effect immediately.
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